TABLE OF CONTENTS
| Date of Birth: | September 21, 1947 | |
| Mother: | Nellie Ruth Pillsbury | |
| Father: | Donald King | |
| Brother: | David King, adopted in 1945, born 1945 | |
| Place of Birth: | Portland, Maine | |
| Wife: | Tabitha Spruce | |
| Marriage Date: | 1971 | |
| Children: | Owen | ... |
Stephen King was born in Portland, Maine in 1947. He and his older brother, David, were raised primarily by his mother after his father left for a pack of cigarettes and never returned. Stephen's childhood was spent living between Fort Wayne, Indiana, where his father's family lived, and Massachusetts and Maine with his mother and her family. Eventually, Stephen and David settled with their mother in Durham Maine, where the boys attended school.
King graduated high school in 1966 and pursued a Bachelors of Science degree in English at the University of Maine at Orono. While a student, he met his future wife, Tabitha Spruce, among the shelves of the Folger Campus Library, where both worked as students. King graduated from the University in 1970, and married Tabitha one year later. King initially was unable to find placement as a teacher, so he and Tabitha lived off his earnings as a laborer at an industrial laundry, and her student loans and savings. Occasionally they would receive a boost from one of his short stories that had been published in various men's magazines. Many of these stories were later compiled into the NIGHT SHIFT collection.
In the fall of 1971, Stephen began teaching high school English at Hamden Public High School in Maine. Writing in the evenings and on weekends, he continued to produce short stories and to work on novels. In the spring of 1973, King's novel CARRIE was published, enabling him to leave teaching and concentrate on his writing.
SECTION 2
Someone wondered if I ever get into these electronic bulletin boards.
I gota peek into this one while preparing to do a speaking gig at
Cornell University, in Ithaca, on October 6th, 1994. I haven't been
in Colorado buying Slurpies at any 7-11s lately, but I was in a Christie's
in Hoosick, New York yesterday. The new book is INSOMNIA, and that's what I'm
promoting. I'm glad so many people liked Frank's version of SHAWSHANK, and
I hope to see many of you on my tour...if the Harley doesn't break
down...or if I don't break down. The question that occurs is whether or not
the people reading this will believe I'm me. It really is, but if I put in
something only I would know in order to prove it, everybody would know it.
It's the only catch, Catch-22. In closing, the big cahunas and cahunettes
here at Cornell want me to tell you that I don't have an account or an
electronic postbox here. In fact, I don't really know what the f- - - I'm
doing. Oh, I think I DO know how to prove I'm me. First, the next book is
called ROSE MADDER—June of 1995 from Viking. Second, it will be Eddie, not
Roland, who saves the party of travellers from Blaine the Mono. Joe Bob sez
"Check it out."
Check ya on the flip-flop,
From: SK79 (Stephen King)
Newsgroups: alt.books.stephen-king
Subject: stephen king
Followup-To: alt.books.stephen-king
Date: 6 Oct 1994 18:20:30 GMT
Organization: Cornell University
Lines: 19
Sender: sk79@cornell.edu (Verified)
Message-ID:
Stephen King
SECTION 3
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Stephen King have an electronic mail address?
As far as anyone knows, NO. If he did have an address, he is keeping it secret from the world. He does apparantly check out the Internet sometimes, as evidenced by the forward to the promo for Dark Tower IV: Wizards & Glass.
When is the next Dark Tower book coming out?
The next book, Dark Tower IV: Wizards & Glass is scheduled to appear in November of 1997. This is the Penguin release. There is no word yet of when the Grant Special Edition will be available.
Is King actually several writers working together?
This question was posed to me recently. I can only say no. While he is quite prolific, it seems ludicrous that he is actually several writers. His writing style is very distinctive throughout his many books.
Has King lost his touch?
Some people believe several of his later books aren't as good as the earlier works. This is a matter of opinion. To all of these people, I suggest you hold judgement until the next installment of the Dark Tower is available.
How can I get in touch with King?
Stephen King will sign a book for anyone who sends a book to him. He will only do this once. His address is available here.
To contact him, I suggest you talk to his publisher, Penguin Books.
How can I get special editions of books?
Many of King's special limited editions are published by Donald M. Grant Publishing.
To get other rarities, check out Betts Bookstore.
How can I get more information about King?
There are several sources of information about King. If you want to pose a question to fans, try the USENET newsgroup alt.books.stephen-king. For reference, there are many books available. I recommend the Stephen King Companion by George Beahm.
First published story was "I Was a Teenage Grave Robber" in Comics Review in 1967.
Please see this document for a list of books and short story collections.
Please see this document for a list of books and short story collections.
Get the list of movies related to Stephen King.